Home Show set for Saturday, March 23, and Sunday, March 24

March 13, 2013|By MEG H. PARTINGTON | megp@herald-mail.com

By Ric Dugan/Staff Photographer

Waiting inside the doors of Hagerstown Community College’s Athletic, Recreation and Community Center next weekend will be almost 200 booths full of information about all things home-related, some presented by companies with a long history in the area.

The Home Builders Association of Washington County is presenting its 28th annual Home Show Saturday, March 23, and Sunday, March 24, at the ARCC. The event started as a way to showcase the builders in the association, but has grown to feature a myriad of products and services related to the building industry and the home, according to the association’s website, www.hbaofwashingtoncounty.org. It has been held at the ARCC since 1997, and consistently attracts more than 6,000 attendees each year, according to the site.

Filling some of the 190 booths at the show will be Oliver Homes in Hagerstown, the president of which, Taylor Oliver, was a founding member of the Home Builders Association, said Carl Vogel, sales coordinator for the company. Vogel said Oliver Homes has been participating in the show since its inception.

“The attendance is great,” said Vogel, who also is a member of the home show committee. “It’s kind of a ritual for spring,” he said, adding that people look forward to the event as a way to beat the winter doldrums.

Oliver Homes is unusual because it frequently builds houses on private lots, Vogel said. It also offers remodeling in its service area, which encompasses Washington and Frederick counties in Maryland, the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, Franklin County, Pa., and Frederick County, Va., he said.

Vogel said he is hopeful about the future of the housing industry.

“The housing market is definitely getting better — from no pulse to a pulse,” he said, adding that 2012 was much better than 2008-10 for the business.

Returning to the show after a brief hiatus is Miller Lumber Co. of Williamsport.

Kelli Nunnally, kitchen designer for the company, said its two booths will feature, among other things, a collage of all the things the company provides, including kitchen design and cabinetry, windows and doors, decking, lumber and a full-service mill where custom woodworking is done.

Nunnally, a member of the home builders association, said she has worked at the show many times, either as a representative of the association or of her former employer, InnerSpace, which went out of business.

“I think it’s very helpful for businesses,” she said of the show. “Most people are there to gather information” and to learn about all things home-related in one place, she said.

It’s also a great place for businesses to network, Nunnally said.

“A lot of those builders are my customers,” she said.

Despite giving up a weekend to work at the show, Nunnally said participating is fun.

“You get to talk about what you do,” she said.

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What: Home Builders Association of Washington County’s 28th annual Home Show